With the help of 4,500 exhibitors—1,400 of which were startups—in front of 141,000 attendees, the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show lived up to its reputation as one of the world’s leading tech events by underscoring AI's intersection with humanity, highlighting accessibility-focused tech, and debuting energy transition and quantum computing conference tracks.  

Attendance figures at CES 2025 marked a roughly 2% yearly increase compared to the previous year, when CES 2024 drew 138,000 participants.  

A spokesperson for the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), which produces the annual tech event, attributed the increase to innovations abounding “not just on the show floor but in every detail that makes the show possible,” specifically pointing to a new website that debuted just in time for the show, held Jan. 7-10.  

CES spanned 12 official venues, but the heart of the event—the trade show floor—stretched across an impressive 2.5 million square feet at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) and The Venetian Expo Center.  

Content surrounding the new quantum computing track was developed in partnership with the Quantum World Congress to “highlight quantum’s transformative potential in security, sensing, and high-performance computing,” a CES representative told TSNN. 

Keynotes with High-Profile Tech CEOs 

Breakthroughs in the sectors were also the topic of NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang’s keynote at the 12,000-seat Mandalay Bay Michelob ULTRA Arena. Huang spent the 90-minute presentation detailing how AI has revolutionized computing. But he didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the walk by introducing the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 GPU, which offers an insane amount of computing power to offer higher resolutions and super-fast memory for an upgraded gaming experience.  

Accessibility goes mainstream 

Despite the complex nature of these new technologies, much of CES’s programming sought to showcase their practical applications. This rang especially true throughout its accessibility track which, as Forbes put it, took accessibility “mainstream,” citing 2023 data from DisabilityTech that valued the market at a whopping $25 billion.  

On the show floor, accessible tech included an array of smart glasses, such as ones from Nuance Audio with built-in hearing aids, plus a line of high-tech glasses—and sunglasses—from Meta’s partnership with Ray-Ban, allowing vision-impaired users to receive real-time visual aids. 

More networking 

CTA also spearheaded a renewed effort this year to offer more specific networking events for various tech segments. Hence, the “Accessibility & AgeTech Reception” hosted in partnership with Amazon, Salesforce, and the MITRE nonprofit. Other new networking opportunities this year included The Digital Health Mixer and Smart Home Mixer, plus breakfast events for tech professionals in the retail and mobility industries, per a CTA rep. 

Mobility at the fore 

Speaking of mobility, this sector received a lot more attention at CES 2025 with the all-new “Mobility Stage” in the LVCC’s West Hall that spotlighted the latest advancements in transportation and smart cities. Perhaps unsurprisingly, autonomous and electric vehicles took center stage, with auto giants using CES to launch their latest creations. 

Perhaps the most futuristic of the vehicles introduced was Aptera Motors’ three-wheeled, solar-powered EV offering that has already garnered roughly 50,000 pre-orders. Priced at a modest $40,000, the sustainable vehicle can generate up to 40 miles of range per day purely using solar energy. 

As part of its amped-up focus on mobility, there was also a keynote on the topic led by Volvo Group president and chief Martin Lundstedt, who spoke on the motor giant’s push toward net-zero emissions. It was one of seven keynotes that took place throughout the four-day event—one of which was led by Panasonic featuring a DJ set by Steve Aoki.  

Delta keynote at The Sphere 

Arguably the most buzzed-about for its sheer scale was led by Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian at The Sphere, where he unveiled a partnership with Uber to allow Delta SkyMiles members to earn points on Uber rides and Uber Eats deliveries come this spring. It was the first time CES used the venue, which opened shortly before CES 2023. (Hewlett Packard Enterprise was the first to host a corporate keynote at The Sphere last year, which you can read more about here.) 

To amplify all that was new and noteworthy at CES 2025 was another brand-new activation dubbed the “CES Creator Space” presented by Sony. Here, 6,000 media attendees and content creators were invited to listen in on the Pinterest-sponsored “Creator Stage” with three days of programming focused on storytelling, content monetization, brand partnerships, rights and ownership, and more.  

What’s next 

CES 2026 will return to Las Vegas Jan. 6-9. 

Lead image: CTA President Kinsey Fabrizio speaking at the CES State of the Union address. All images courtesy of CTA.

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